Translated by
Microsoft from French
Microsoft from French
Translation of the presentation video: 3 days to solve the riddle: Yes it's pretty much ready without solution it takes 72h of errement to find the right pixel hiding the object.
Great graphics: it's true, in 1997 it was at the forefront! HA pardon the game is released 10 years later?
A fantastic cast of characters: who have no charisma to start with the investigator who is doing well as a parrot a victim: the player an investigator named Jacques normal (already better than his intelligence, he does not even see that the death was killed by bullet , you need a coroner for that) 10 possible suspects: accused with such big strings that we already suspect that the culprit will not be who we want to believe.
An Art Deco hotel: completely empty.
On a tropical island: just as empty but you are made a service it flows.
Benoit Sokal, author of some of the best adventure games presents: the worst he ever did!
The drowned island
Translated by
Microsoft from French
Microsoft from French
Mixed opinion.
I found it very interesting the principle of conducting the investigation by analyzing clues and testimonies collected. The PDA system that allows to cross all this into coherent sub-sets answering specific questions necessary for the progress of the investigation is really well done.
The investigation itself is not great, from the classic family history that could have been solid without some unreliable elements, but the suspects all have enough reason to hate the victim so that the suspense lasts a good time.
The problem is that the more "material" game mechanics are super painful.
Already commuting. It is necessary to type dozens in sets that would give a nice atmosphere in comic (personally it paradoxically reminds me of Schuiten and Peters) but to make incessant roundtrips in this empty greyness is at best boring, at worst depressing. Factor aggravating the time line of the game makes that scenes already visited can see new elements appear so it is not just displacement, you have to be vigilant.
The good news is that the PDA knows how to locate the suspects. Anti-immersive as possible this GPS stinting but at least we know where to go.
The statements of each other overlap quite often and on some issues, assembling the bundle of concordant clues predetermined by the game holds a bit of the lottery.
The clues in the décor are sometimes totally invisible. It's really passing the mouse over that the cursor change will attract our attention. It's not pixel hunting because the active areas are pretty big but we still spend a lot of time sweeping the void in case.
Another perverse effect of the investigative principle is that we will show the clues and ask the questions in a somewhat systematic way in case (well yes it is rare but occasionally one of the suspects loose a piece of info on a subject that has nothing to do) and suddenly , it gives a big impression of repetitiveness. This point is not really a defect, it is even rather immersive this choice to go to the essentials by risking to miss or drown the suspect under a traffic light but it may not please.
Moui so, one in the other, I will say slightly positive opinion.